3 blade to 4 blade?????

[THEFERMANATOR]

Originally Posted by Destroyer

From the iboats prop selection section:

3 blades... or 4?

We recommend 3-blade propellers for recreational boats with 3, 4, and 6 cylinder outboards and I/0 engines.
These propellers provide good "hole shot" and top-speed performance.

We recommend 4-blade propellers for bass boats and boats with high performance hulls running high horsepower outboard engines.
Compared to 3 blades, they provide better "hole shot" performance with less steering torque and less vibration at high speeds.

When switching from 3 to 4-blades, generally a 1" pitch decrease is required. So, a 21" pitch 3-blade prop is replaced with a 20" pitch 4-blade prop. Pitch is increased when switching from 4 to 3-blades.

Hope this helps a little

Some of this is true today, but 4 blades have come a long way in recent years. If you are running the REBEL that is the equivelant of a MIRAGE which already has alot of sternlift to it. MERCURY makes a 4 blade MIRAGE I believe that you could try, but you would need to drop 1-2 pitch sizes. I still think a good 3 blade is the best all around and a MIRAGE or THUNDERRBOLT would be a good all around prop for a V-20 with a good size outboard. A 4 blade may help you out in the cruise area, but chances are you will lose some top end.